Castle of Endings
by SoraMisty
Summary: Here it is, the whole annoying story... Which I am unable to finish due to writer's block. If you want to finish it, e-mail me at soramisty@yahoo.com and put "Finish Story B" in the subject line.
1. Default Chapter Title

Castle of Ending, Part 1 – A New Home

Author's Note: I read the first few parts of Medieval Digimon War (I don't remember who it's by, but at least the first few parts are awesome) a little while ago. It and a dream I had the longest time ago inspired me. I combined the two, and this was the end result. I think this is an original idea, though. 

Everyone who is impatiently waiting for part 2 of "Is the End Near, Tai?"; you may have to wait quite a while. I am out of ideas, and it, being one of my sequels, will take much longer to be written, as I am searching for the loopholes I know I left, and I am STRETCHING it to last over 6 parts. So, here's the deal. You let me finish this, Castle of Ending, and then I'll go back to that, sometime near January 31. K-O? Why don't you read this while you wait?

AND… This involves Taiora, Mimiato, and Takari. If you don't like these, go ahead and flame me, I don't mind. I am going to start a flame collection of all my flames, and store them for later, in case the power goes out and we have no heat! 

This takes place about 3 years after season 2. I know almost nothing about Season 2, so if I put a season 2 person out of character, it's not my fault!

Anyway, now that you've read my (excessive) note collection, you can read the fic!

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Joe left his college building, thinking about how glad he was to have followed his own trail and become a writer for the plot of video games. He left Advanced BASIC Programming to go to his next class when a purplish-blue portal sucked him and his books in…

Matt, Sora, and Tai were in the "Study Buddies" hall, which you could enter and talk about anything as long as people thought you were doing homework, when the bell rang for Gym. They SLOWLY gathered their books and stepped out, when a purplish-blue portal dragged them in…

Mimi was at Gym, sitting out because she'd broken her toe, when the bell rang for her, too. She fell out of her chair, stood up, and walked out, when a purplish-blue portal pulled her inside, followed by Izzy, who was 4 feet behind her…

TK and Daisuke were arguing over Kari as they walked to Science, with Kari and Yolei behind them, when the portal grabbed them…

Iori was watching football at home, because he had a bad cold when he was also lifted into the portal…

**********************************

With a thump, 11 people landed in a room. Mimi winced when her toe hit the ground.

They glanced at each other, and knew where they were. They were back in Digiworld, in Gennai's house.

Gennai was missing. The Digimon were also nowhere in sight. They were alone. Scared for Gennai, the Digimon, and themselves, they were silent. Tai broke the silence.

"Guys, you know, we ought to do something."

Izzy nodded grimly. "I'd be typing away for a theory, but… I'm no longer allowed to bring my computer to school or they'll confiscate it."

Daisuke glanced around. "Well, we can't just sit here. What if whatever got Gennai and the Digimon…"

"Right." Joe replied. "As oldest of all of us, I propose we get OUT of here!"

Mimi shook her head. "For one thing, I have a broken toe, and walking for more than a minute straight hurts BAD. And I think it might be more dangerous to leave than to stay, guys." She'd matured a lot since she'd moved back to Japan.

Yolei nodded. "We don't have our Digimon, so we can't fight back."

The argument continued for about half an hour. It was almost funny, the way it progressed. The arguments were nowhere near logical 9 out of 10 times!

Kari's eyes began to glow. She was being possessed again! Everyone crowded around her. Then, Kari's voice began to speak in a very un-Kari-like manner. "You must not leave here. You'll be killed. Stay where inside the lake, so you won't get hurt. I don't have any more time…" Kari shuddered and fell down to her knees, her eyes shut.

Tai shook Kari. Kari's eyes opened slowly. "What?" she asked, speaking like she had when she was 7. "Oh." she replied to her own question. "So what do we do?"

"Stay." Iori replied.

Tai and Daisuke began discussing a plan. They had to force their way through Gennai's passwords (he had at least 78, Izzy had figured out 77). Then, they'd use it to find out about what had been going on up to the last entry. It all rested on Izzy's computer skills and everyone's ability to speak "Gennai Cryptic" (which had been given to the way Gennai spoke by TK). 

Izzy walked up to the keyboard and switched it on, then he started typing in the passwords from a list. The first 10 seemed to make a sentence. "Hello, everyone, my, name, just, happens, to, be, this:, Gennai."

The passwords continued to be typed in. After 4 hours, Izzy finally finished. There had been 100 passwords. Izzy was tired. They were all tired. It was 1-o-clock in the morning, and all anyone wanted was to go to sleep. Tai volunteered to take first watch. He was exhausted, too, but he knew that, as original leader, he had to do SOMETHING.

Tai woke up Matt at 2. Tai was no longer tired, and wanted to talk to Matt while he did watch. "Hey, Matt… Can we talk during watch?"

"Sure, maybe if it's interesting it'll keep me awake." Matt replied, leaning against the door from the outside.

"Matt, since you claim to be the expert on love, I've got a question. Say one of my friends liked somebody, but they were afraid to ask because they didn't want to ruin the friendship if she said no. What should my friend do?"

Matt laughed. "Well, first of all… This 'friend' of yours should get some guts and talk to this girl, because I am sure that the girl will like the 'friend' of yours, and by the way, I'm not as stupid as you think, I know what you really mean, and yes, Sora likes you 'that way'."

Tai blinked. "How the…"

"I've had 5 girlfriends, and I too learned the art of having an imaginary friend that just so happened to have the same problems I do. Currently, this imaginary friend thinks it is a good idea for me to take my own advice…"

"What?"

"Hey, just because I'm the expert on girls doesn't mean I need practice." Matt snickered. 

Tai grinned. "Well, your advice… I'll sleep on it, if I can ever get to sleep." Tai lay down on the hard floor and managed to doze off.

Matt knew he had to wake up Sora for the next watch. He toyed with the idea of talking about Tai's "love life" with her. He threw the idea away. Sora would never believe him, and besides, it would be funny to listen in on the conversation they had when and if Tai got some guts. 

He shook Sora up and lay down on the hard, cold floor. He wondered about Gennai's house. It had looked small, but did Gennai have a basement? Maybe Gennai had a bedroom… Anything, even hard carpet, was better than marble. 

They say the darkest hour is just before dawn. In this case, it was true. It was so dark that it was pointless to keep watch. You couldn't see your hand in front of your face, much less a creature 40 feet away. So, they slept until light shone into the room, through the window.

They all got up, some faster than others, except Iori, who had a fever and needed to sleep it off. Sora was told to work with the computer that morning. She found Gennai's diary.

__

"October 22, 2002

"A new evil Digimon, Serpantmon, has been born. He has no master, that is a relief. I must keep track of him, though. He may only be a Rookie Digimon, but he will be a threat if he digivolves. To young Digimon, he is already a serious threat. He already has a killing record. I must call the Destined Ones' Digimon here. They will be his next targets.

"January 31, 2003

"Serpantmon has digivolved to Cobramon, a Mega form. I am worried. Will the Resistance be able to hold him off? Like I have said thousands of times before, safety is a thing of the past.

"January 1, 2004

"I have set the Digidestined to arrive in a month. I hope that they can come in time. We must keep strong. Biyomon and Palmon have been able to reach the Mega level without their Digidestined. Agumon and Gabumon have been able to for a long time but refused, but they will now."

That was the last entry.

It had been February 1st yesterday. 

Sora turned around slowly to her friends, to break the news.

"We might be too late."

**********************************

__

Are the Digidestined too late to save their friends? Did Gennai possess Kari? Do I know, or care? Find out more questions, and maybe answers to these, in Part 2 of Castle of Endings!


	2. Default Chapter Title

Castle of Ending, Part 2 – Angels and Devils

Author's Note: Enjoy, I order you. Oh, and no, that wasn't Gennai's entire diary, to answer my mental question. That was just enough to give you the gist of it. Oh, and you'll very soon understand my title, just wait a chapter or 2!

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Sora's remark was not left unnoticed. Tai was the first to realize what she'd said, and he raced to the computer. The hints dropped were easy to put together, and the message was simple. Time was running out, and fast. 

As the idea snapped in everyone's mind, a panic arose. Thoughts raced through Izzy's mind in rapid succession. _The Digimon are gone… Tentomon might be dead… We aren't safe no matter what unless we have our own power… We need the Digivices… This is bad._

TK glanced around. As usual, Izzy was in deep thought, not really aware of the reality of the situation. But, very oddly, Joe seemed calm. He wasn't in full panic like almost every normal person would. Instead, he was breathing deeply. 

Joe suddenly spoke into the silence. "Don't panic. Something will come in, and save us and/or help us out. It always does. We'll be fine." 

Everyone blinked. A chorus of whats, huhs, and whatevers erupted. "Uh, Joe, are you okay?" Iori mumbled.

"Yes, I've just been taking classes from the optimist club." 

"I'm thinking he's taken a few too many." Yolei snickered.

"I'm surprised he even reacted to it!" Tai laughed. There was a burst of laughter from the kids that retained a sense of humor in a state of total panic. The laughter died down almost instantly, spirits were too low to laugh long.

Something black swept past the window. It went so fast that you couldn't even make out what it was. It didn't seem to like the water very much. But everyone, mourning the possible death of his or her Digimon, didn't notice it. 

***********************************

Izzy gave Sora a light tap, and she got off the computer. He found the Digimon analyzer, and ran the program. It listed the names of every known Digimon, "in alphabetical order for convenience." He clicked on Cobramon. 

"Cobramon, a serpent and virus Digimon. Attack: Poison Wing. Information in prophecies about this Digimon: Cobramon is said to raise an army of Devils. The Royal Guardians will try to fight him and fail, barely surviving. The Angel Guardians, both siblings of Royal Guardians, will finally defeat him, with the help of the Royal Guardian's power."

"Guys, read this!" Izzy shouted. "I think it might be the way to… Well, it's a hint. Of something. That I'm not sure of."

Matt read it, then sighed. "This is going to help us how?"

"I don't have a clue." Daisuke replied. I think we ought to go home. If evil's taken over entirely like it seems… There's not a thing left to save."

TK kicked him in the shin. "Don't talk like that! We don't know that yet! For all you know, Veemon could be this guy's captive, waiting for you to come save him!"

Tai sighed. "I almost think that Daisuke's right, but at this point, there is positively zero ways to get home. Why don't we search the house? If we can't find anything else, we'll probably find a way home."

Everyone nodded, and they walked into the bedroom, afraid of what they might find.

The bedroom was neat. The bed was made, the pillow fluffed, no signs of struggle. If there were any clues, they weren't going to find any in Gennai's bedroom. 

They walked out the door and walked into another room. It was a kitchen. This was a sharp contrast to the bedroom. There was a half-eaten breakfast on the table. The microwave was open, and what could only be Digimon food was in there. They left in a hurry, that was for sure, and they must have been panicked, too, if they didn't even eat.

They walked back into the hall and found the front door. They knew they couldn't leave the house but they wanted to look out the door. Footprints of all shapes and sizes ran up the path. At the top of the path… There was blood. It had to be blood. Tai silently left a tear run down his cheek. Someone had died there, or had been hurt very badly. Probably badly enough to die within a few feet of the area. They couldn't bring themselves to look past the blood.

"We-we've seen enough f-for today." Sora stuttered, crying.

"Yeah, let's go back to the marble room." Tai suggested. He put his arm around Sora, and managed a weak smile. "It couldn't have been someone we knew." he told them. It did no good, as it sounded like he was trying to force himself to believe it, but couldn't. 

Someone had died there. Someone they knew, well enough to cry for. 

And, with any logical reasoning, they'd realize who it was.

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Author's Note: Ok that's creepy. Did I just even write that? Oh, gosh, I did! Don't be scared, I'm not insane. Guess who I killed off? I left a huge hint for you, and if you have any logical reasoning, you'll know who it was. First person to guess it right gets to decide the fate of the Digimon! (If you decide they die, be specific, like "It was _______ and the Digimon were hanged." and if you decide they live, you have to give the extent of the damage, like "It was _______ and the Digimon were completely unhurt, but they were turned evil.")


	3. Default Chapter Title

Castle of Endings, Part 3 – The Castle

Author's Note: Okay, NOBODY could answer who it was, and I got NO reviews from y'all. So, I'll give you my reasoning, and who it was, and then I'll put something easier at the end, okay? 

It couldn't have possibly been a Digimon. Digimon don't DIE, they are reconfigured. The only other person living there that would dare to leave is Gennai! It was Gennai! Gennai is dead! I killed him, ha ha ha… (If you haven't noticed, I hate Gennai.) 

On with the fic. I'm going to kill all the Digimon and thoroughly describe the blood and gore if I don't get reviewed. J/K… I think…

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It was finally night again. Sleep finally overcame them, after many long hours of restlessness. The dreams were troubled, and frightening. For example, let's look at Sora's dream from that long night.

__

They were running. She didn't know why, but she knew that she'd been running a long time, and that they had to keep going.

She looked back, not stopping, and saw it following her. The most evil thing possible was there. She couldn't see it, but it was there, somewhere, chasing them…

She stumbled and fell. She let out a sharp cry, and Tai looked back, powerless to do anything, as it slowly soaked into her…She heard Tai scream as it finally got her…

Sora woke up, breathless. She was soaked in sweat. The room was pitch-black, and it was nearly impossible to see. Something could be coming, it had to be, and it could get her in the dark… No, that was silly. She was safe here. Tai was on watch, looking out into nothing through the window. It was cold. It was also quiet, all she could hear was breathing. Tai wasn't mumbling. Tai picked up his Digivice. It was 4:00. Sora's watch, she knew.

Tai walked over, and Sora sat up. Tai sat beside her. "Nightmare?" he asked quietly.

"You bet. Oh gosh, it was awful…" Sora went on to tell Tai all about it.

"Creepy. I'm glad it was just a dream, because I don't know what would be worse: being taken by it or watching your best friend being taken by it." _I'd die if it killed you, I love you. _he silently added.

"Agreed." Sora whispered. _If that took you, I'd be so scared. I love you, so much, and I couldn't go on without you._

Tai went to bed, mentally cursing at himself for not telling Sora he loved her. He managed to go to sleep, but not for very long, as something grabbed them…

***********************

They woke up in a castle. In a prison cell, but they knew it was a castle. Tai looked around, and whispered to everyone. "We're not the only ones, there's a girl in here too. I don't think that there's any way out, we're guarded from all sides. Does that girl look hurt to you?"

The girl seemed to be 18. Her blonde hair just barely reached her shoulders. She seemed to be asleep, or knocked out, but she wasn't dead, for sure. Clutched in her arms were a silver flute, slightly dirty, and a stuffed monkey. She wore rags that might have once been a purple dress. It was dark, but the floor was scattered in hay. They all lay down and slept, not able to think of anything else to do.

Morning came, and the girl shook them each in turn. "You're the new ones they were talking about, the Guardians! I bet they were lying when they said you were the Guardians, but you're a lot of people for a load… My name's Celeste, and I've been here since I was 11. I don't really know how old I am anymore." she finished. 

"Will they hurt us here?" Matt asked.

"Well, as long as you don't drink anything they give you, you'll be fine. Breakfast will be that paper-maché stuff today. I wonder how much of it will be flour today…" Celeste mumbled.

A guard slipped 12 bowls of water with small amounts of flour and the occasional bit of paper swirling in there inside the cell. Celeste eagerly drank the mixture. Everyone else followed suit, gagging at the taste. The guard slipped glasses of some mixture in. Celeste pretended to drink it, and everyone copied her. The guard walked away, and Celeste walked to the window and dumped the glasses out the window for everyone. "I really don't know why you think it's so bad." she told them. "It's pretty good compared to some of the stuff we'll get… Today is leftover day! We'll get some of the empress's leftover lunch for dinner!" Celeste seemed sincerely happy about getting cold leftovers. 

The guard came back and took all the bowls away. Celeste grinned. When the guard got out of earshot, she picked up her flute and ran her fingers over the smooth metal. It was comforting to her, to just hold it, day after day, hour after hour… And she left herself relax.

"Celeste, can you play anything?" Matt asked, startling her out of her trance.

"Wha-what? Oh. Well, not much. I got captured in my first year of learning. I can't really play much." Celeste replied. "It was all I could do to keep it hidden all these years."

Celeste sighed inwardly. _Gosh, but I shouldn't be making friends with these kids, after all, they're about to have their heads cut off, and so am I, at any rate. I guess I should tell them. Oh, that would be fun. "Hey, and by the way, your heads are going to be cut off after dinner." Ha. As if I could do that. _It was only then that she realized that she was still talking to the other people in there. "No, I really don't want to play…"

"Please, Celeste, please?" Sora pleaded. 

Celeste nodded, aggravated. "I hope this isn't too bad, compared to what you've heard…" She lifted the flute to her lips and blew softly, moving her fingers without thinking at all. It caused a slow, sad tune to fill the cell.

"That was pretty, but so sad…" Yolei mumbled.

Celeste nodded. "When you haven't seen any of your family in so long you've forgotten the date for years, you're pretty sad. I've had a bunch of different cellmates, they stay, we become friends, and they take them to be killed. I haven't been killed because I hide under the hay when they come to kill. The guards are so stupid… But I think that I'd go with you. You seem so kind, and innocent, and I can tell even the most icy of you have feelings. You're already my friends, after only an hour." _Okay, that wasn't lying, I would go to be killed with these people. I'm just… not telling them the whole truth…? Which I guess is for their own good… I hope it's for their own good… Celeste, what have you gotten your poor self into?_

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Oh, gosh, I like Celeste, and I pride myself on her. She is my first self-insertion that is not a Mary Sue! And guys and gals, if you like Celeste, you'll love Pipermon, who gets her star role in Nouri no Kaisen by hikari! READ IT! 

Okay… Anyway… Flames, Death Threats, Cheers, Marriage Proposals, and anything else are readily read! Rate Castle of Endings so far, 0 to 10, 0 being the worst fic you've ever read and 10 being the best. 

And finally, as promised, an easier contest. Just provide me with something to happen to the gang and/or Celeste and/or the Digimon, and the best of each will be used! Please suggest, please! Also, I'm wondering myself, whose side is Celeste on? Your pick… J

Life is Sweet, but Fanfiction is Better! 

SoraMisty


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